A Doctor’s Journal Entry for August 6, 1945 - MCQs

1. In which city is the poem "A Doctor's Journal Entry for August 6, 1945" set?
   a) Nagasaki
   b) Hiroshima
   c) Tokyo
   d) Kyoto
2. The date in the title of the poem refers to:
   a) The end of World War I
   b) The bombing of Nagasaki
   c) The bombing of Hiroshima
   d) Japan's surrender
3. At the beginning of the poem, the doctor is:
   a) At the hospital treating patients
   b) Walking in the garden
   c) Sprawling half-clad on his bed
   d) Reading a newspaper
4. The line "The morning stretched calm, beautiful and warm" mainly creates a sense of:
   a) Suspense
   b) Irony
   c) Humour
   d) Anger
5. What first alerts the doctor that something unusual has happened?
   a) A loud siren
   b) A strong flash, then another
   c) People shouting outside
   d) The ground shaking gently
6. Why does the doctor think of a magnesium flare?
   a) He saw it in a film
   b) It is commonly used in fireworks
   c) It is familiar to him from war reports
   d) It is a medical instrument
7. The collapsing house in the poem primarily symbolizes:
   a) The doctor's carelessness
   b) The weakness of Japanese architecture
   c) The destruction of normal life and security
   d) A simple domestic accident
8. Why is the doctor and others described as "naked" or "half-naked" after the blast?
   a) They were bathing at the time
   b) It is a religious ritual
   c) They chose to remove their clothes to stay cool
   d) Their clothes were burnt or torn off by the explosion
9. The doctor feels "no shame" at his nakedness mainly because:
   a) He is used to being naked
   b) He is too proud to feel ashamed
   c) The situation is too shocking and desperate for social norms
   d) No one can see him
10. What is the most likely reason the people walked with their arms outstretched?
    a) To balance on the uneven ground
    b) As a form of prayer
    c) To prevent their burnt skin from touching their bodies
    d) To signal for help from planes
11. The phrase "shadowy forms of people" suggests that the survivors looked:
    a) Energetic and hopeful
    b) Clear and strong
    c) Ghost-like and unreal
    d) Angry but healthy
12. The line "My mind ran at high speed, my body crept behind" is an example of:
    a) Simile
    b) Metaphor
    c) Antithesis
    d) Hyperbole
13. The journal form of the poem mainly helps to make the events seem:
    a) Imaginary and distant
    b) Personal and immediate
    c) Confusing and disjointed
    d) Comic and light-hearted
14. Which of the following best states the central theme of the poem?
    a) The value of discipline
    b) The beauty of Japanese culture
    c) The horror and futility of war
    d) The importance of hard work
15. Why is a doctor an effective choice as the narrator of this poem?
    a) He can give technical medical explanations and feels no emotion
    b) He is educated, observant, and able to assess human suffering
    c) He is a famous political leader
    d) He causes the explosion himself
16. Which figure of speech is present when the poet describes the victims as "scarecrows"?
    a) Simile
    b) Metaphor
    c) Personification
    d) Alliteration
17. The silence of the victims in the poem mainly symbolizes:
    a) Obedience to government orders
    b) Simple shyness
    c) Shock and the voiceless suffering of the weak
    d) Their satisfaction with events
18. Which aspect of war does the poem highlight most strongly?
    a) Strategic planning
    b) Heroic soldiers
    c) Civilian suffering and destruction
    d) Economic gain
19. The old stone lantern that glows in the blast can be read as a symbol of:
    a) Peaceful illumination turned into a witness of horror
    b) A festival about to begin
    c) A new scientific invention
    d) A decorative garden object only
20. Which of these best describes the tone of the poem as a whole?
    a) Comic and playful
    b) Calm and indifferent
    c) Shocked, helpless, and deeply tragic
    d) Boastful and proud

Answers: 1-b, 2-c, 3-c, 4-b, 5-b, 6-c, 7-c, 8-d, 9-c, 10-c, 11-c, 12-c, 13-b, 14-c, 15-b, 16-b, 17-c, 18-c, 19-a, 20-c.